Cloth Diapers, All you want to know

no clue where to start

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kirkhams327 wrote:

ok ladies help a gal out. I want to cloth diaper, I am a FTM with NO CLUE where to begin as NO one in my family has ever not used disposables! The environmental impact is my main concern. Can someone simply explain where to begin, what brands work well. Do I start from birth or after 1 month? ( I've hears both answers) What are inserts for etc. thanks in advance!

There is a post called "start here" in this group that you should read. It's a lot of info, but it's soooo helpful. Also, fluff love university website has a lot of info and lastly YouTube.

I started cloth when we got home from the hospital, but a lot of people wait until after the NB phase.

Right now we love flats or prefolds snappi'd on and covers. I use bamboo flats/prefolds and Thirsties duo wrap covers.

In the newborn phase I used sweet pea covers or Thirsties.

My son is 9 weeks old so I'm very new to cloth.

Cloth diapers are like clothes-what works for your friend may not work for you. A few websites offer a few different types of diapers in a package at a discounted rate (ex- 1 pocket diaper, 1 cover, 1 AIO, 1 fitted) so you can try and see what you like. I did this through nicki's diapers and found it helpful!

This board is my absolute #1 place to go when I have questions though. The ladies here are amazing.

When you start is 100% up to you. We waited until about 5 weeks, thinking that as first time parents we didn't need the added stress of trying to figure out CDing on top of figuring out parenting. I'm glad we waited, but if we have another we will likely start from birth, as it's much easier than I thought!

Best bet for inserts (if you're using covers or pockets) is prefolds or flats. Don't bother with anything that's sold as an "insert" as they're usually twice as much for half the absorbency! We use covers and prefolds and LOVE them (even DH!) but you should try a few different styles to figure out what works best for you before you commit to buying a ton of one type.

I loved using cloth from the day we got home. We used covers with bamboo flats folded on. Youtube on how to do a mini kite fold, that's what we did and "jelly rolled" the legs, which created a snug leg fit so poop didnt escape(super common with newborns!)

We liked rumparooz, sweet pea and nickis diaper covers. We had 9 covers and around 36 flats, which gave us enough to go 3 days between washing. Now that our boy is 4 months we still use flats but we pad fold them (youtube) and put them in covers. We also use pocket diapers with bamboo flats pad folded as the pocket insert.

If you cloth diaper I suggest cloth wipes. They are so much better than disposables and go right in the laundry with the diapers. We picked up a pack of thin gerber wash clothes, grovia wipes and bumgenius wipes. I like them all equally.

As another perspective, on start at birth or later, when you need more diapers, would you rather do a load of laundry at home or run out to the store? For me, I thought doing a load of laundry was easier than chasing out to the store.

Most people that choose not CD starting at birth do so to avoid having to buy NewBorn sizes. One Size diapers do not fit NBs well or at all. NB sizes generally (varies by brand) will work for baby from birth until 14 pounds (2 months to 6 months old depending on your baby's size). OS diapers, in my opinion, despite what the manufacturer says, don't fit well until at least 10 pounds. I started using OS on LO at 8 pounds, with no leaks, but they did look big. LO is 15 pounds (7months) and I finally just now feel that my OS are looking like they give a decent fit.

If you're looking for environmental reasons, look into flats & covers. They are the "hardest, most time consuming" option to put on baby (it's really not hard or time consuming IMO). But they are the easiest to clean & use the least of amount energy during the wash/dry (more will fit in one load in wash than other kinds & they dry MUCH faster). Covers can be re-used without washing if no poo.

Read the "start here" post. I didn't invest in newborn cloth. LO fit into one size by 10 lbs. Buy a variety but stay away from microfiber and china cheapies. Just stick with natural fibers and order from legit diaper shops like Nicki's Diapers, Kelly's Closet, Diaper Junction, etc. Familiarize yourself with the general types of diapers (pocket, covers, AIOs). My favorite has always been pockets and Bumgenius is by far my favorite(stuffed with flats). Pockets are easiest for other caretakers, easy on-the-go, and easy to spray poop off of. AIO are trim, convenient and don't require any folding on laundry day, but don't hold much and are expensive. Covers with flats or prefolds are the most economical and the most leak proof for newborn poop and very heavy wetters, but are intimidating to newbies and aren't as quick of a diaper change if you are wrestling a toddler. In general, anything called an "insert" isn't really worth the money because they don't hold very much and are the most expensive. Most of us use flats and prefolds. Or flour sack towels if they are a light wetter ($1 at walmart). You can put ANY type of absorbency into ANY diaper except microfiber can't touch their skin directly.

I'm a FTM too and want to get started as well when our LO comes in August. I started buying a few different brands, some covers and inserts, some all-in-ones, some hybrids, etc all used so we can test the waters without a huge financial commitment. (There are plenty of buy/sell groups on Facebook and even on here.) We will have disposables for traveling and if it just gets overwhelming, especially at first. Once we see what works best, we may commit a bit more to a certain brand/type. Good luck!

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